Animals often become injured or undergo medical procedures that require some time to completely heal. Often, the recovering animal slows the healing process, or in some cases, does further damage, because they do not take the precautions necessary to prevent further irritation to the healing area. Because they cannot be instantaneously trained to not engage in activities that may cause harm to an injured and recovering area, it is necessary to provide garments that will protect the area and even accelerate the healing process.
The prior art discloses protective and therapeutic devices for animals. One such device is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,076,043 (Butler). This device has two sleeves that envelope the animal's legs. A pair of straps is provided to connect the straps together and secure them to the animal. The sleeves are made of a leg section having an internal and external fabric layer with a padding material placed therebetween. The upper shoulder portion is unpadded.
A similar device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,341,765 to McComb. The device is a protective garment formed a single piece of material that forms a strap extending across the animal's back and has ends formed into sleeves for surrounding the animal's legs. The garment is made from double layered fabric. The cushioning qualities of the fabric are relied upon to provide protection for the animal.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,479,457, issued to Rotolo discloses a protective elbow pad for dogs. The pads are made from an outer layer of durable fabric, a foam central layer, and an inside layer of soft felt-like material. The elbow pad is adjustable in size and surrounds the immediate elbow area. None of the prior art devices disclose a protective device for animals having a pocket that can receive padding or a hot or cold pack.
It is an object of the invention to provide a pet protective garment having a pocket that receives padding or a hot or cold pack.
It is another object of the invention to provide a protective garment for an animal that protects the animal's joints and aids in healing.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a protective garment that has an area of padding and an area of hot or cold.
It is an object of the invention to provide a pet therapeutic garment that is easy to put on an animal.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a pet protective garment that is inexpensive and easy to manufacture and easy to clean.
It is still another object of the invention to provide a protective garment that protects both of an animal's legs and loosely connects one another.
These and other objects of the invention will become apparent after reading the description of the invention which follows.